Mitral regurgitation - chronic

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Heart, section through the middle

Mitral regurgitation - chronic

Alternative Names:

Chronic mitral valve regurgitation; Mitral valve insufficiency
Symptoms:

fatigue, exhaustion, and light-headedness (may result from low cardiac output)
palpitations (related to atrial fibrillation)
cough
shortness of breath
- with exertion (exertional dyspnea)
- when lying down (orthopnea)

Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease:

urination, excessive at night

Note: Often no symptoms are present. When symptoms occur, they often develop gradually.
Signs and tests:

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Palpation may show thrill (vibration) over the heart. A stethoscope examination of the heart reveals a distinctive murmur. Rales (a crackly sound) or other abnormal breath sounds may be heard on lung examination. Ankle swelling, enlarged liver, distended neck veins, and other signs consistent with right-sided heart failure may be present.

An enlarged left atrium with a thickened or deformed mitral valve, and regurgitation of blood may be seen on:

echocardiogram (an ultrasound examination of the heart)
transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE)
cardiac color-Doppler study
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
cardiac catheterization

A chest X-ray may show an enlarged left atrium. An ECG often suggests left atrial enlargement. Enlargement of the left ventricle is also a frequent finding. Other tests may include radionuclide scans or a CT scan of the chest.